King County Elections has received more than 100,000 ballots since July 28 — outpacing projections for the first days of all-mail voting for the Aug. 17 primary.

“It’s really helpful that voters are getting their ballots mailed back to us early,” Elections Director Sherril Huff said in a news release. “The top two reasons some ballots never get counted are due to being mailed back to us too late or the voter forgetting to sign the oath on the back of the return envelope.”

Huff has predicted about 45 percent of the 1.1 million King County voters will cast a ballot in the primary.

Head outside, grab a hot dog and offer ideas about the latest addition to the city parks system.

The city Parks & Recreation Department will host a picnic Aug. 26 for residents to share ideas about the downtown parks at the confluence of Issaquah Creek and the East Fork: Tollë Anderson, Cybil-Madeline and Issaquah Creek parks.

Gather at 595 Rainier Blvd. N. for the 5 p.m. picnic. The program — held on land set aside for the parks complex — starts at 6 p.m.

The city plans to spend up to $1.6 million to complete the plan and build the initial phase. Issaquah voters approved money to develop the parks in a 2006 bond.

Jay Hagel, a hook-on ironworker with Local 86, adds a signature to the final structural steel beam during the topping-off ceremony for Swedish Medical Center's Issaquah Highlands campus. By Greg Farrar

NEW — 3:25 p.m. Aug. 6, 2010

Crews completed a construction milestone at the Swedish Medical Center campus in the Issaquah Highlands on Friday, as a crane hoisted the last steel beam into place.

The market has planned several events to celebrating, including a cooking demonstration from Era Living Executive Chef Elon Wagoner from 10 a.m. – noon and a performance from the Firehouse Fiddlers from 10:30 a.m. – 1 p.m.

The state Supreme Court has suspended Judge Judith Eiler — the brusque King County District Court judge who has drawn comparisons to TV’s “Judge Judy” — from the bench without pay for rude behavior.

In a decision issued Thursday morning, Supreme Court justices ordered Eiler to be suspended for five days without pay. Several of the incidents occurred during her stint at district court’s Issaquah Courthouse.

“Several litigants — and even some attorneys — reported being ‘embarrassed’ by Judge Eiler’s ‘degrading’ treatment, and feeling ‘mocked,’ ‘attacked’ and ‘uncomfortable’ in her courtroom,” the opinion states.

For the sets at SecondStory Repertory at Redmond Town Center, the Navy-diver-turned-musician plans to draw from a growing catalog he has sharpened during regular performances at Zeeks Pizza in the Issaquah Highlands.

Connolly has been described as a Celtic-infused amalgam of Jack Johnson, John Mayer and Dave Matthews.

For the Redmond performance, Connolly will deliver a primarily acoustic set, but he also has a high-tech trick up his sleeve.

The office performs the standard pre-election procedure to make sure tabulation hardware and software function properly. Then, after the test, the equipment will be locked and sealed until the election.

People can register in-person at the elections office in Tukwila by 4:30 p.m. Monday. Learn more about the registration process here.

King County Elections Director Sherril Huff offered some last-minute tips to voters in a video posted to the elections website Tuesday.